I’m stuck in the middle of a s*** fight between Telstra & NBN

Get ready I’m about to have a rant about my experience with Telstra & NBN over the past 2 weeks, it’s still not resolved and still don’t know when it will be.

Keep in mind we don’t have NBN and I work from home. We have a fully set up office with separate phone lines etc.

The only way to get me off the floor, yes, I’ve been sitting in a heap crying rocking backwards and forwards like a crazy person was to write this.

Here we go, take a deep breath, now where do I begin…

I’m getting anxiety just thinking about it; I know it sounds a bit dramatic but wait till I tell you the story.

Here goes

The afternoon of Friday 17th February parts of Sydney was hit with a huge storm hail and all. A giant branch from a gum tree fell and ripped the cable that runs from the house to the street pole off. These things happen.

I reported it to Telstra that afternoon, the lady was very helpful (that’s what I thought at the time) informing me that someone will be at the premises Saturday morning, I was so stunned I said to her are you sure that seems very quick, she’s talking about sending someone the very next day. I got off the phone turned to Mike and said wow haven’t Telstra stepped it up.

I even received a phone call from Telstra at 10.15pm on Friday night confirming appointment and was asked if a ladder or cherry picker was needed.

So, I go to bed feeling happy that my businesses are not really going to be affected. Our phones and internet will be back up and running. Business as usual.

Now the bullshit begins

Guess what? Yep a no show. I jump back onto the phone to Telstra to be told sorry someone will be there Monday, ok no problem totally understand as I’m sure after the storm that they are quite busy with repairs.

I did have appointments on Monday so I text and emailed (which I could do on my phone using 4G) and rescheduled for Tuesday.

Come Monday no one showed up, no call, no text message so I’m on the phone again, to be told once again sorry the tech will be there Tuesday. A little frustrated I reschedule all my appointments again. I can tell some clients aren’t happy but I’m stuck and have no option.

It’s now Tuesday and I wait patiently, todays the day I’ll be back on line and back to work. The call time was between 8-12, it’s now 11am and I call Telstra again they say, you guessed sorry but a tech will be there tomorrow 8-12.

I have been extremely patient which isn’t one of my strengths and I lose my SHIT. Telstra stop saying SORRY AND DO BETTER. This is now a JOKE.

Wednesday comes you know the drill; reschedule appointments, wait around, no show, get back on the phone, sorry blah blah blah. I am fuming.

Speaking to people in other countries hasn’t made it easy either but finally I get transferred to an office in Townsville QLD.

They cannot believe what I tell them and inform me that it’s not a Telstra tech who will be coming it’s an NBN tech. I don’t have NBN. Sorry (yep another bloody sorry) Kathy but NBN now own the lines in your area and only an NBN tech can be sent. I don’t give a crap what sort of a tech comes to fix it just send someone. Just so you know it’s illegal for us to send a Telstra tech, well it’s illegal to charge me for a service you can’t provide.

I now have the Townsville office phone number and a case number I know off by heart. After 15 calls, at least and talking to someone different every single time I’m told Monday 27th an NBN tech will be there to fix it.

It’s now Thursday there’s nothing I can do. I check emails as best as I can on my phone. It’s not easy; I get hundreds of emails a day and this old girl can’t see as good as she use to and trying to read them on my phone is difficult. It’s been nearly a week and I have over 4000 emails; a mix of newsletter’s, new product info from PR’s, new businesses wanting me to test their products and offers from brands to work together.

Scrolling through the emails I missed one of the work offer emails & found out as they didn’t hear from me offered it to someone else. Yep I’m fuming, lucky Mike is in Melbourne for the day, he would have come home to a nut job.

Need to let things go next week is another week and I have been told a tech will be here Monday morning between 8-12.

Monday 27th February, I spent half the day on the phone to Telstra with no answers. Oh, forgot to mention THEY DIDN’T SHOW UP. No one could tell me why? I was promised yes promised that someone will be here tomorrow. I didn’t have any appointments to cancel because I stopped making them.

About 4 o’clock Monday I thought I’d call just to confirm Tuesday as “promised”. Sorry Kathy, I scream down the phone STOP SAYING SORRY. Just so you know I did apologise for screaming at whoever was on the other end of the phone saying it’s not personal I’m just frustrated with the whole situation. Anyway, I was told you don’t have an appointment tomorrow it’s not booked in till 7th March. My head spins and green stuff is spraying out of my mouth. This is a horror story. NO, NO, NO check your notes, oh yes, I can it was booked for tomorrow but it’s been cancelled, was anyone going to tell me? WTF.

I started to cry out of pure frustration. They said they are going to fast track, they did and once again promised a tech will be on the premises Wednesday 1st March.

Wednesday 1st March at approximately 11am a tech showed up. Happy dance as I walked down the stairs to greet him. The excitement lasted about 30 seconds. He pulls his camera out to take a pic then says he will put a report in. What? that’s it I’ve been stuffed around for 12 days and all you’re here for is to take a pic. I could have done that and sent it to you. Yes, is yes all you have for me? When will someone be here to fix it. It will be months.

I should mention that I got a text message saying I have exceeded my monthly download and Telstra have waived that. I did enquire about a dongle, Telstra said to go and buy one and they will credit our account. This was only offered later in this shit fight. I’ll get to what the sort of solution is in a moment.

Back on the phone, I said please just give me a date. We can’t. We need to contact NBN and they will contact us to contact you and that won’t be for a few days. They have offered to add data to my phone so I can use as a hotspot. I then get a call saying that the data increase has been declined because it’s a business mobile????????????? Don’t panic keep using your phone and the complaints department will reimburse you. I’m a glass half full person but I’m not confident this reimbursement is going to be smooth sailing. Every solution I am being given is for me to pay and I’ll get reimbursed, why can’t you add data, why can’t you send me a dongle. They have offered to send me an office phone solution which is supposed to arrive tomorrow.

It has seriously become a joke so my next call is to the ombudsman, I’ve repeated the story again, they have escalated the problem.

I don’t know what else to do.

Today Thursday the 2nd March I receive a call from the NBN resolution centre. They don’t tell me anything I don’t know which isn’t a lot. They couldn’t even tell me when someone was coming. I did say to him that I feel like I’m in the middle of a shit fight between NBN and Telstra and he agreed.

What he did say which concerns me is. I told him I’m using my phone as a hot spot and been given 10g of data. He asked what I do for work and he agreed I am online a lot, I sure am about 12-16 hours a day. 10g won’t last long. Please only use for business, well what else am I going to use it for???? He replied he can add $50 once it’s reached 10g but I don’t think you’ll be given any extra data. Hold on a minute I’m told the repair can take 6-8 weeks and you guys aren’t going to help, yeah we’ll see about that.

By the way the temporary phone Telstra were going to send me today hasn’t arrived, it’s 5.30pm what do you think the chances are of it arriving?

So, if I haven’t responded to your email or you have had trouble getting in touch with me please be patient, I will get back to everybody as soon as I can. I do have ‘000’s of emails to go through (there goes my 10g of data). I will be employing someone to help me catch up on all the work.

How are small businesses supposed to survive when you have companies like this you depend on.

A couple of days ago, I was thinking of closing Shopping Confessions & Island Trading Co was all too hard, setbacks like this can undo everything you have done. 2 weeks offline is a killer.

Then I picked myself up, it takes more than this to knock me on my arse, it will take a bit of time to catch up but I’m determined.

Thank you to everyone for understanding.

Kath x

I’m stuck in the middle of a s*** fight between Telstra & NBN was last modified: March 2nd, 2017 by Kathy Sheeran

1 comment

I know exactly how you feel. I am in exctly the same situation here in WA. IInet says my problem is a Telstra fault but a wait its now an NBN problem because they own the lines.
No one tells the consumer anything ad us small business owners are stuck with businesses which are dying becauee of no/intermittent internet.